GERMANY: WITTENBERG

 May 17, 2025

About 50 miles northwest of the sleepy little town of Torgau and also positioned on the Elbe River is Wittenberg, a somewhat larger city with 45,000 inhabitants. A university was established here in 1502, which attracted two important luminaries to its faculty line-up: Martin Luther and his friend and fellow reformer Philip Melanchthon.

Luther's and Melanchthon's portraits were painted by Lucas Cranach the Elder,
the most famous German portraitist of his day, who painted at least ELEVEN portraits
of Luther and over THIRTY of Melanchthon..

Wittenberg is a typical charming German town, maybe even more charming than most because unlike many other German cities of any size, it was spared destruction during World War II. Its religious history protected it from the Allies' bombs. However, it was occupied by the Soviets after the war and became part of East Germany in 1949.

Germany has their own version of "George Washington Slept Here." Two windows in this pretty building are marked with this information: Karl August (1757-1828), who was the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, visited the city in 1820, and Napoleon I, aka Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821), King of France, slept here in 1806 and 1813. 

I always love a bit of street art.

I don't know why it should be surprising to see a Mexican-American restaurant named Loco Gringo (Crazy Foreigner) in Wittenberg, but it was. The menu includes "Mexican-American" dishes such as fried pork liver with basmati rice. I know that's what I get when we go out for Mexican food..

No time to stop for lunch. We were headed for the Schlosskirche or Castle Church (aka All Saints' Church)

The original church was built in the late 15th century. It is this church where Martin Luther is said to have nailed his 95 Theses (which focused primarily on the sale of indulgences in the church) onto the main entrance door, the place where university staff typically pinned messages and notices, on October 31, 1517. Most scholars believe that event never took place, but it has been established that Luther DID send his objections in writing to the Archbishop on that day. 

Unfortunately, the original church was completely destroyed in 1760 during the Seven Years War. It was rebuilt about sixty years later.

The German words Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott are on the band encircling the dome. That is the title of the glorious hymn composed by Martin Luther: "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God."  One story is that Luther came home to Wittenberg after some time away to find that workers were busy building protective walls around the city. This did not please Luther, and in his frustration he wrote this hymn to remind his people from whom their strength and protection actually comes.

This unusual 289-foot-tall round steeple and the hymn title were part of a restoration project of the entire building in the 1880s.

The other Gothic-style steeple is more traditional.

The church was always part of a complex that is dominated by the Wittenberg Castle, not the most beautiful castle in Germany.

A piece of art caught my eye on the way into the church.

Study for a Crucifixion by Jan Bertheau (2014)

The text of Luther's 95 Theses is provided in German. If you are interested in what it says in English, you can find it here. At the time he wrote them, Luther was a devout Roman Catholic priest and a professor of moral theology at the University of Wittenberg, and these 95 points comprise a list of proposals for scholarly debate, not an immediate break from the established church.

This version of the church was built in the Neo-Gothic style popular in the late 19th century. It has a very interesting ribbed-vault ceiling that reminds me of smocking on a little girl's dress.

The organ is where it traditionally is--above the entry door and at the opposite end from the altar.

Flanking the entrance are these two carved stone reliefs that serve as tomb markers. On the left is Rudolf II von Sachsen (Elector of Saxony and Duke of the area from 1356-1370) and his wife, Elisabeth of Hesse. On the right is their only child, a daughter who was named after her mother. Their bodies were moved here in 1538.

The grave that most people come to see, however, is that of Martin Luther, which was here at one time but which may have been consumed in the fire that burned the place down in 1760. Since this church was rebuilt on the same spot, however, this is the best place for Luther's memorial.

The Latin inscription reads: MARTINI LVTERI - S - THEOLO. CIAE - D - CORPVS - H-L-S-E - QVI - AN - CHRISTI - M-D-XLVI-XII - CAL - MARTHII EYSLEBII IN PA, TRIA - S-M -O- C-V - TRIA - S-N-O-C-V - ANN-LXIII - M-II-D-X.  According to AI, that means "Here lies buried the body of Martin Luther, Doctor of Sacred Theology. He died in the year of Christ 1546 on February 18 in his paternal city of Eisleben at the age of 63 years, 2 months, 10 days."

Statues of Martin Luther and his friend, fellow theologian, and collaborator Philip Melanchthon peer down from their pedestals at the congregation. Melanchthon preached at Luther's funeral and was also buried here in the Schlosskirche. 

For the 500th anniversary of Luther's birth, twelve new stained glass windows were installed in the church. I don't know which ones they are as there are plenty to choose from, but here are a few of my favorites:

The big tourist draw is the "Theses Doors." Of course, these are not the original doors that, according to legend, Luther tacked his debate/discussion topics on. It's not even the same church, having been rebuilt after fire and then substantially remodeled a century later, but these doors stand in the same location as the doors on the original church. The weathered wood  of Luther's day has been replaced by metal with raised lettering that includes every word Luther wrote and sent off to the local archbishop--all 95 topics.

A shimmering mosaic depicts Luther at the foot of the cross, offering the crucified Christ a book of . . . scripture?  his writings? And who is the other man? Perhaps it is Melanchthon?

The 95 Theses are divided into six columns.

Time for lunch. Wittenberg is a very walkable city. I love these old, multi-colored buildings and curved streets. 

We had lunch at the Wittenberger Kartoffelhaus (Potato House), a restaurant that serves potatoes in a hundred or so ways, along with other items. I had fried potatoes with veggies that reminded me of the food my German Oma used to make. Unfortunately, the only photo I took was this one of a little mural on the wall that translated in English reads, "I, the black bear, wish all my guests happy hours in my house."

This weird metallic orb sits in the town square and advertises "Wittenwalk, a Digital Discovery Tour." You can use the QR code to "start a digital discovery tour and experience [the] city's history as you chat with historic figures." We did not opt for this adventure.

Germans have a flair for the dramatic, such as the Stadtkirche (City Church), aka St. Mary's Church, rising authoritatively over the four-story buildings.

These are poor photos because of the light, but that is Melanchthon on the left and Luther on the right. They are the twin theologians of the Protestant Reformation, and I wonder why I had never heard of Melanchthon before this trip.

We made our way into St. Mary's Church. Lutheran churches in Germany are much less ornate than the Catholic churches, but they still have plenty  of their own kind of ornamentation and have similar layouts--altar at the front, raised pulpit on one side,

. . . and an organ generally in the back over the main entrance.

Lutherans practice infant baptism by sprinkling, but from what I can tell, the focus is less on original sin and more on gifting a person with the grace (an important term in Lutheranism), which is unearned forgiveness, and bringing the child into the fold of God. 

The most beautiful part of the church is definitely the altarpiece, a tryptich painted by Lucas Cranach the Elder in 1547 just one year after Luther's death. His son Lucas Cranach the Younger painted the panels on the back and put the finishing touches on his father's work on the front. The three front panels depict the three Lutheran sacraments: baptism, the Eucharist, and absolution.

The center panel depicts the Last Supper, with Jesus on the left and John the Beloved in his arms. Martin Luther himself is depicted as one of the twelve apostles. I believe he is the one in the black cap and blue robe, as he was customarily painted by Cranach wearing a black cap. I love the vibrant colors of Renaissance paintings!

In the left panel, the priest baptizing the infant is Luther's friend Melanchthon. The right panel shows Johannes Bugenhagen, another friend of Luther and a fellow Protestant, acting as the pastor offering forgiveness to a parishioner.

 

The additional panel under the tryptich shows Luther in the pulpit preaching a sermon, the crucified Christ symbolically in the center, and Luther's wife Katharina as one of the congregants.

The church displays other paintings by the Cranachs, including Epitaph for Paul Eber and his Family, The Reformers in the Vineyard of the Lord (1573) by Lucas Cranach the Younger. He shows two groups caring for the Lord's vineyard. The old school Romans, including the Pope, are on the left and are demanding higher wages from Christ, but their people are clearly destroying the vineyard on the hill above. The Reformers on the right are doing a much better job and demanding no payment. Paul Eber, a professor of theology and pastor of Wittenberg's parish church, is shown on the right kneeling next to his wife. He is holding a Bible and is surrounded by his children, both living and dead.

Another painting by Lucas Cranach the Younger is The Baptism of Christ in the Jordan, Epitaph for Johannes Bugenhagen and His Family (1560). It shows the Trinity: the Father at the top of the painting, the Holy Ghost depicted as a dove, and Jesus Christ the Son being baptized.

Of all the Cranach paintings, this one of Christ the Good Shepherd (1555) by Lucas Cranach the Younger is by far my favorite. The original was not in the church, but this photo of it was enough. I'd love a copy.

Outside the church and underneath this beautiful tree we found what I thought at first were Stolpersteine, the brass bricks honoring those murdered by the Nazis. However, the engraving in the steely gray frame says it is a "Compensation memorial to the Jews at the Wittenberg town church."

It is in effect an apology for the medieval stone carving near the roofline next to the tree that shows four people that can be identified as Jews by their clothing acting obscenely with a female pig. It is one of 47 examples of anti-Semitic Judensau ("Jew-sow)" sculptures dating back to the 13th century that remain all over German-speaking lands.

Martin Luther himself was strongly anti-Semitic. A plaque at the site acknowledges that Christian anti-Semitism was a precursor to the Holocaust.

Back out on the streets, we were surprised by how empty this bastion of the Reformation was. It was not high tourist season, but shouldn't there be some tourists? I wonder that if with the loss of interest in institutionalized religion, tourists no longer care about religious sites.

On our way to our next destination, I was intrigued by this grouping of bronze ducks. After coming home I discovered that this is the "Kleinschmidt House." Otto Kleinschmidt (1870-1954) was a German ornithologist (hence the ducks) and theologian.

Our last stop was the Lutherhaus Museum, which was Luther's home for 35 years, beginning in 1508 when he was still a monk. Luther began his religious life as an Augustinian monk, and this was originally an Augustinian monastery. It was here he formulated his 95 Theses. He later lived here with his family. Since 1883 it has been a museum, and today it is the largest repository of Reformation history in the world. I'll include a few things that caught my eye.

Lucas Cranach the Elder painted this panel of the Ten Commandments in 1516 for the court of the Wittenberg town hall.

This is a textbook created by Martin Luther used for relgious instruction by pastors and parents. The drawings were created by Luther's friend Philip Melanchthon in collaboration with the Cranach workshop.

This iron-bound "Indulgence Chest" with its five locks is an example of what was used to protect the revenues gained through the sale of indulgences. Penitents placed their money in the plate on the lid to be counted before it was pushed through the slot in the lid.

The face in this painting of Philip Melanchthon by Lucas Cranach was damaged during World War II, but since Cranach had painted 30 similar Melanchthon portraits, it was easy to reconstruct the face in restoration work.

The painting on the left of Martin Luther by Lucas Cranach (1525) is assumed to be one of the best representations of Luther's likeness.The one on the right is also Luther, and also by Cranach (1541).

Many paintings of Luther show him wearing his doctoral cap, including painting by Lucas Cranach the Elder in 1522.  The macabre painting on the right by Lucas Cranach the Younger shows Luther on his deathbed.

Luther loved music and made it a part of the Reformation, including congregational singing as part of the worship service. Luther himself composed the music and lyrics for at least 36 religious hymns. He also sang and played music in his home, as shown in this painting by Heinrich Stelzner (1886/87). Luther's wife sits at the window sewing.

Speaking of Luther's wife, of everything we saw in Wittenberg, my favorite is probably this sculpture of Katharina ("Katy") von Bora, the assertive, educated wife of Martin Luther and herself an ex-nun. Unlike the Catholic church, which placed celibacy as the prime virture, Luther advocated for marriage between loving couples and stressed that husbands and wives were "spiritual, intellectual, and emotional partners." Luther was 42 and Katharina was 26 when they married in Wittenberg. Luther called his wife "Mr. Katy" and noted that she was his superior, the Moses to his Aaron (Witte, John Jr., "The Lutheran Reformation of Marriage," Encounters with Luther). Katy bore Martin six children and raised four additional foster children, but she also handled all the family finances and had a profound influence on all that Martin did. I love the imagery of Katy striding confidently through this door, a symbol of the changes she helped bring about not just for women, but for religious men as well.

Information on-site reads, "The many different versions and copies of the portraits of Martin and Katharina created by the Cranach workshop had a political function from the beginning. They demonstrated that former members of religious orders could marry. The head covering that Katharina is wearing chracterises the former nun as the wife of a burgher. The pictures were used to promote social acceptance of this then unusual way of life for people of the clergy."

Martin Luther and Katharina von Bora by Lucas Cranch the Elder, 1528

Martin Luther's parents look like they had a much harder life than he did:

To say that Martin Luther changed the course of history is a huge understatement. No doubt reform would have occurred without him as there were many who joined with him in protesting against problems in the established church, but Luther's combination of intelligence, charisma, and leadership certainly sped things up and charted the Protestant course for the future. 

It seems fitting to end with this wonderful scroll painting showing Luther in the traditional Korean robe of a Confucian scholar, the hanbok. It shows that Luther's influence reaches far beyond western civilizations.

Luther in Hanbok (2017)
by Cho Yong-jin

MOVIE

Who knew there was a movie about the life of Martin Luther? I didn't!  However, I thought I  might find a documentary, so I went looking. Instead, I found a 2003 historical drama called Luther. The blurb that comes with the movie reads, "Regional princes and the powerful church wield a fast, firm and merciless grip over 16th-century Germany. But when Martin Luther issues a shocking challenge to their authority, the people declare him their new leader--and hero. Even when threatened with violent death, Luther refuses to back down, sparking a bloody revolution that shake the entire continent to its core."  

An interesting note: the actor who plays Martin Luther is Joseph Fiennes, the brother of Ralph Fiennes, who plays Voldemort in the Harry Potter films. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

The movie is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime. It gets two thumbs up from us!

READING

I have a friend who is a religion professor at the University of Redlands. When she heard about our trip to Luther-land, she was very excited. Having an interest in Luther herself, she dug through her library and came up with a few books that she thought might be useful to me as I tried to understand the man, the historical context, the revolutionary events, and Luther 's impact on the world. These books have been very helpful.

Encounters with Luther: New Directions for Critical Studies, Kirsi I. Stjerna and Brooks Schramm, Editors                                                  The book contains current research on Luther by an international and ecumenical pool of scholars with topics including war and violence, the theology of the cross, sex and marriage, the eucharist, prayer, politics, and suffering.

The Making of Martin Luther by Richard Rex              How did Luther go from being a lecturer at an obscure German university to one of the greatest intellectuals and most influential reformers of his time? In this approachable text (also available in audiobook), Rex, a professor of Reformation History at the Faculty of Divinity of the University of Cambridge, looks at Luther in the context of his times but also as a unique individual with spurts of creative energy that changed the world. The focus is mostly on the development of Lutheran doctrine and was helpful to me, a non-Catholic and non-traditional Protestant.

Europa Reformata 1517-2017, Michael Welker, Michael Beintker, and Albert de Lange, Editors  Martin Luther wasn't the only reformer in Europe. This series of essays charts reformation activity in 48 European cities from Antwerp to Zurich and including names such as Melanchthon, Spengler, Wycliffe, Tyndale, Hus, Luther, Zwingli, and a lots of others I have never heard of. The point is that while he was the driving force, Luther did not act in isolation.

Martin Luther and the Reformation (Essays) and Martin Luther: Treasures of the Reformation (Catalog), Sandstein Verlag, Publisher                                                         This visually gorgeous two-volume set includes thousands of high-quality images paired with essays and descriptions. It is well-organized, accessible, and comprehensive--a Luther encyclopedia that covers just about every topic related to the man and his environment.